Many Homeschoolers are Delayed Readers Too July 1, 2023 By Bekki 4 Comments This content may contain affiliate links.Inside: Ways to inspire your late reader. {Plus free cheatsheet} All FIVE of our sons were delayed Learners #1 Son Didn’t talk until he was four Couldn’t read until he was six Wouldn’t drive until he turned 19 #2 Son Didn’t walk until he was almost 2 Didn’t read until he was six Couldn’t follow simple directions until he was embarrassingly old #3 Son Didn’t walk until he was 18 months old Couldn’t be without his “blankie” until he was 5 Believed balloons and umbrellas would eat him until he was 3 #4 Son Didn’t walk until 18-months Didn’t read until he was six Took an entire summer to ride a bike at age 7 Still can’t hold a pencil correctly at 18 #5 Didn’t read until he was TEN Still can’t spell at 16 Didn’t know where New Zealand was until 3 weeks ago Our kids were all delayed at something, maybe even a bunch of somethings. But, thankfully, they were also delayed at: Surviving being teased and tormented by other kids Being exposed to teaching that doesn’t line up with our Biblical worldview Failing in unsafe environments Thinking that they are entitled Making sitting at a table/desk a priority Being lazy and ungrateful <br /> Where are they now? #1 is married and moving up quickly in his career. He reads over 500 words a minute and is a historian. In an emergency, you want this guy to show up. Calm, cool, clear, and knowledgable. #2 Married, completed his BA, leads a prayer group weekly, knows God’s word inside out, and devours everything written. He is currently completing his first screenplay and is in the editing process of completing his first short film. He is loving, compassionate, trustworthy and kind. He has also worked his way through college and lives a debt-free life. #3 The funniest, wittiest one of the bunch. Self-taught musician, this is the musically gifted one of the bunch. He is currently writing his first score and is woking at our church as a worship assistant, while holding two other jobs. I am pleased to announce he no longer runs from the sight of balloons or umbrellas (which is great because we live in the WET side of Washington) #4 We call him DATA. As in the robot from Star Trek. He is the most academic brain in the bunch, desiring to understand how we can prove any and every scientific fact and finding. Just yesterday he shared that he wants to memorize the periodic table of elements so he will be better equipped to decipher chemical combination. We call this one the gentle giant. At Six foot one and growing, he towers over us all, but has the most compassionate heart of all. #5 Continues to be the busiest bee in the hive. He must move, disassemble, and repair everything. He is the reason I believe, “If I could go back I wouldn’t teach any of the boys to read until they turned ten or begged me”. His reading comprehension is through the roof because he spent his childhood absorbing stories, vocabulary and ideas as words were read aloud to him. He didn’t spend his childhood decoding… WOW. What a gift. Our kids need to be delayed by the world’s standards, so they can develop according to the Lord’s Plan for their life. Don’t Panic if Your Kids Cannot Read Yet! Just keep reading to them. Leave them hanging in stories. Grab an exciting book and suddenly have to “Stop Reading” at an extremely exciting part. Talk to them about the books you are reading. Listen to audiobooks in the car. Give them access to books, lots and lots of books. Gather books that are below their reading level and have them “hanging around”. You, mom, pick up children’s literature and read silently to yourself. Let your kids see you reading kid’s books, grown-up books, funny books, well, any books. Help them see that a good book is fun. What to read? Delightful Books for Preschoolers and their parents 120 Classics to you should read with your kids before they leave home I have had 5 reluctant readers myself. Five. I chose not to panic about it, but to follow my own advice. Our youngest was the most reluctant yet. He didn’t begin reading until he was ten. Yes, TEN. I always read aloud to him and kept giving him the opportunity to read, but it never “clicked”. One day, that all changed. I was walking all over our home looking for him one day. He was silent… I was shocked to stumble over him reading quietly in a corner while snuggling with the dog. Did I say I was shocked? I knew it would eventually happen, but I was still shocked when it did. Do you have a reluctant reader? Keep reading to them. Supply them with lots of books. Visit the library. Often. Leave ’em hanging in a story. Just never give up. They will read. Never make it a negative, reading is fun. The only thing that matters is THAT they learn to read. Don’t Panic if Your Kids Cannot __________! Just fill in the blank. We live in a world that preaches, “don’t judge.” And yet we do. Usually, we judge ourselves to tears. We feel so wonderful about the walk, conversation and science activity our kids goggled through, and then feel deflated when someone shares the essay their 4-year old wrote on astrophysics. I used to color my grey hair. Now I simply listen to it closely. Let your kids develop at their own pace, but push them just slightly. Embrace your child’s natural talents and abilities. Do they need to run? Have them “do laps” and make them pause to catch their breath while you read aloud. See a growing interest on a topic? Visit the library and check out all the books on the subject you can carry, and then prop them up on your window sills. Don’t worry, they’ll ask you to read. Read aloud to your kids. EVERY day. Yes, audiobooks in the car count!! Encourage kids to uncover solutions, rather than “get the right answers”. Use the curriculum as a last resort, not the primary teaching tool. Trust your husband. He may see things you don’t. Trust the Lord. He knows exactly what your kids need. So my youngest son didn’t read until he was ten. So what? We were careful to keep him out of situations where this would embarrass him and we equipped him with what to say if he found himself stumbling over the printed page. Big deal! My oldest son didn’t talk until he was four. Honestly, he was our first child so we were stressed about it. But hindsight reveals why. He WALKED at six and a half month old. The child was too focused on gross motor and then fine motor development to be concerned with the pestering little details about language. Frustrating, that our second son couldn’t follow a string of instructions when he was little. He just needed extra time. Mama, whatever you think your child should be able to do right now… relax. If he is developmentally ready, set up FUN practice sessions. But keep it fun. Childhood should be filled with smiles, love, and delight. Our kids should be safe in our hands as they develop at their own pace. Relax. Breathe. I promise. They will read, write, experiment, solve equations, load dishwashers, and drive their cars away to their own home… when it’s the right time. You’re doing great. So are they. The only “behind” in homeschooling is the one the child sits upon.
Natasha says January 16, 2017 at 4:05 pm Yes, yes, and yes! There’s a big difference between teaching a child to read and raising a book lover. You’ve nailed it. Reply
[…] Room to grow and develop at your child’s pace… Heaven! All five of our sons were delayed learners in one way or another. Our youngest didn’t even read until he was ten. But the joke’s on the educational […] Reply
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